Online Registration for Swim and Tennis Center Programs Available
February usually brings warmer temperatures back to Florida.
Why not join us for a swim and a game of tennis at the Westchase Swim and Tennis Center? Our hours of operation for swimming are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week. The tennis courts and office are open at 8 a.m. each day for reservations or additional program information. We are starting a volleyball competition for each subdivision of Westchase to encourage friendly team play with Westchase residents and their guests. Please contact the Swim and Tennis Center to sign up.
You can also register for all programs at the swim and tennis centers from the comfort of your home. For registration and additional information about programs available at the Westchase Swim and Tennis Center, please see our Web site, www.westchasewca.com.
Shires is the WCA’s Operations Manager and can be reached at wcacenter@wcamanager.com.
By Kelly Shires, WCA Operations Manager
Swim News
February means the onset of the championship swim season. Our 15-and-older swimmers are gearing up for Senior Championships in Orlando near the end of the month. The 14-and-younger swimmers are focused on the FLAG Meet in Sarasota (formerly known as Junior Olympics).
These meets are very fast and represent the state championships for their respective age groups. Our swimmers who have not achieved any qualifying times are looking forward to the Area 3/5 meet in March, which is also held in Sarasota.
We have been blessed with a pretty mild winter so far, compared to the last two winters. Many of our meets and all of our practices are outside, so the Westchase swimmers are pretty tough. They, however, like the mild weather as well.
In January we attended one indoor meet and one outdoor meet. The indoor meet was at Clearwater's Long Center Pool, where we had a huge Westchase group competing with 610 swimmers from around the country. The outdoor meet took place in St. Pete and was the last chance for our Westchase swimmers to achieve their championship cuts.
We are looking forward to March and our big meets!
By Kelly Allen, Director of Competitive Swimming
Allen is the WCA Director of Competitive Swimming and can be reached at kah2o@aol.com.
Warm Pool Water and Great Tennis Tournaments
Winter’s cooler temperatures don’t shut down the Westchase Swim and Tennis Center.
Please join us for a new year of fitness and health. Contact Mike for our tennis programs and adult tournaments. For our swim programs please contact Kelley Allen. Our pool temperature is maintained at a toasty 82 degrees.
The Early Bird Swim is scheduled for Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 5-7 a.m. The TriGals swim on Tuesday and Thursday from 10-11 a.m.
By Kelly Shires, WCA Operations Manager
Shires is the WCA’s Operations Manager and can be reached at wcacenter@wcamanager.com.
Swim News
Here we go full-bore into a New Year.
The Westchase swimmers should be proud of everything they have accomplished the past year. Our membership has increased, our kids are swimming well and people have been taking notice!
The Westchase crew finished off 2011 by attending the Gator Meet in Gainesville and the B Championships in St Petersburg. The Gator meet was big and fast, with more than1,200 swimmers in the competition. It was a feat to make it through the preliminary heats and qualify for the evening finals. We had Kyle Kimura in the 15-16 Boys division making finals in the 50, 100 and 200 free. Paige Carter qualified in the 13-14 Girls and ended up swimming a super race later that evening, taking ninth place and winning the Consolation Finals.
Jabari Ramsey won the 50 and 100 breaststroke in the 11-12 Boys finals. He also took second in the 100 IM and fourth in the 200 IM. Ava Carter took two second place medals in the 10U Girls 50 and 100 yard breaststroke races.
The next weekend we were again in St. Petersburg at the B Champs, the state meet for Non-Junior Olympic level swimmers. We had several first place finishers, including Austin and Lauren Sellers, Richie Bui, Carolina Ricciardi, Maddie Strassen, Christopher Quach and Ben Parker.
It was a great end to swimming in 2011 and we hope for a great 2012!
By Kelly Allen, Director of Competitive Swimming
Allen is the WCA Director of Competitive Swimming and can be reached at kah2o@aol.com.
Tennis News
On Saturday, Dec. 10, we had our inaugural Holiday Mixed Doubles Compass Tournament. We started the first round at 10 a.m. and we finished the last match at 3:30 p.m. All teams played three matches for placement in the draw, which set up eight finals. Each point of the compass had teams playing for the big prizes. Everyone was in a final based on his or her record for the day. We had very competitive matches with many finals ending in tie-breakers.
Nell and Alex won it all, finishing the tournament with a 4-0 record by defeating a team of Dana and Quinn in the finals.
We had a full draw of 16 teams (32 players) in the tournament. There was great competition and prizes for the division champions. We offer our thanks to the sponsors of the tournament: Applebee’s, Burger 21, Catch 23, Essentials Spa, Five Guys, Peggy O’Neills (Palm Harbor), Red Bamboo Medical Spa, San’s Pizzeria, Serenity Spa, Stone Chase, Surf Shack, West Park Deli and World Of Beer
Tennis Tournament Winners
Nell/Alex, East Champion
Dana/Quinn, East Finalist
Nadina/Russ, SE Champion
Kim/Chuck, SE Finalist
Anne/Jeff, N Champion
Quynh/VanMan, N Finalist
Dyan/Mike, NE Champion
Alex/Philippe, NE Finalist
Kathy/Lee, W Champion
Steph/Mark, W Finalist
Sandra/Andrew, NW Champion
Sarah/Dan, NW Finalist
Printha/Meir, S Champion
Tonya/Mike, S Finalist
Melanie/James, SW Champion
Annica/Drew, SW Finalist
By Mike Larscheid
Larscheid, the WCA’s Tennis Pro, can be reached at mike@wcamanager.com.
Westchase Soccer Announces Spring Registration
Registration for Westchase Soccer Association’s spring 2012 season is just around the corner.
Please visit www.westchasesoccer.org for information regarding program offerings, registration and volunteer opportunities.
We anticipate fielding Under 5, Under 6, Under 7, Under 8, Under 10 and Under 12 age groups, provided that there are enough volunteer coaches. The registration fee for these age groups is $90.
A MiniWee program will be offered to children 3½-4 ½-years-old as an introduction to soccer. Children must be 3½ by July 31, 2011 in order to be eligible to participate in the spring MiniWee program. The registration fee for the MiniWee program is $70.
Eligibility for participation is not based on the child’s current age. Participants must meet eligibility requirements based on the Florida Youth Soccer Association’s age division cut-off date of July 31, 2011. This age grouping is effective for one academic year. Please refer to the age division chart on WSA’s Web site before coming to registration. An original, legible copy of the child’s legal birth certificate must be provided at the time of registration for all new participants. It is strongly recommended that parents read the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on WSA’s Web site prior to registration.
By Margot A. Pinheiro, WSA President
Little Flippers Now a Year-Round Swim Instructional Program
This month Westchase expands its swimming instructional opportunities for young residents.
The Westchase Swim and Tennis Center is now offering a year-round Little Flippers swim program for swimmers ages 6-9. Please contact the swim and tennis center to make an appointment for a preliminary swim test with Kelley Allen, our Director of Competitive Swimming.
The center’s pool, located off Countryway Boulevard, is heated seven days a week to 82 degrees. We invite you to join us for lap swimming for fitness.
Our tennis program is offering a winter camp for the kids and adult tennis socials. If you would like to be added to our invite list for tennis events and socials, contact Coach Mike Larscheid at mike@wcamanager.com Programs and updates are available on the Westchase Web site, www.westchasewca.com.
By Kelly Shires, WCA Operations Manager
Shires is the WCA’s Operations Manager and can be reached at wcacenter@wcamanager.com.
Swim News
December is an important month for Westchase’s swimmers. With a long break from school near the end of the month, we have an opportunity to step up our practices a notch! The older swimmers get to do doubles, a term that simply means they will be swimming two practices a day. This is a chance to really make some big strides in their swimming before we head into the championship season.
Now that Little Flippers has become a year-round, this is also the first December we have held the program. This group is entirely instructional in nature, so we are hoping for a mild winter this year so we can see its participation levels grow.
The Westchase swimmers have been tearing up the local swim meets. We have recently attended competitions in Largo, South Tampa, St. Petersburgh and Clearwater. Our swimmers shone at these meets and brought home plenty of awards and new personal best times. Currently Westchase swimmers are gearing up for the Gator Classic at the University of Florida in Gainesville and the Florida Swimming B Champs, held later this month in St Pete.
I hope everyone has a great holiday season as well as a great swim season!
By Kelly Allen, Director of Competitive Swimming
Allen is the WCA Director of Competitive Swimming and can be reached at kah2o@aol.com.
Tennis News
If you haven’t already, it’s time to register on www.westchasewca.com. All you need to do is log on and register. There is no cost for doing so. By registering for an account you will be able to sign up for our player search option. This option allows you to find other tennis players for pick-up matches.
All of our swim and tennis programs now have online registration. If you are already in the program, you will save by registering online. All of the players that are currently in the Junior and Adult Tennis programs are considered preferred players. By signing up for programs online you will get a savings on all programs. If you are a preferred player and take a session off, you will still remain on the list. If you take off for more than one session, you will have to re-enter the programs at their original costs and then be added back to the preferred player list.
The Adult Tennis Buffet has two new options. There are two morning clinics, three evening clinics and one weekend clinic per week from which to choose (more information about the clinics can be found at westchasewca.com). Players can drop in for any clinic or they can buy a package of “anytime clinics.” If you purchase a package of “anytime clinics,” you must use them in the current session. They do not roll over.
Get registered! Come on out to the courts for the health of it!
By Mike Larscheid, Westchase Tennis Pro
Larscheid, the WCA’s Tennis Pro, can be reached at mike@wcamanager.com.
Village Pool Closes for Season
From the Operations Manager
With the cooler months, one of Westchase’s pools will close until May.
I want to thank all the residents that visited the Village pool this year as we have closed it for the season. We enjoyed maintaining high standards of customer service, resort-style conditions and improved water chemistry for 2011.
We will continue to provide swimming services at the Countryway Boulevard pool year round, as the temperature will be maintained at a toasty 84 degrees during the colder months.
Please check our Web site, www.westchasewca.com, for additional programs such as the TriGals, Masters, competitive swimming, and swim lessons. Tennis lessons and group classes are also available. Please visit the Westchase Swim and Tennis Center or browse online for lessons and events taught by our tennis professionals.
By Kelly Shires, WCA Operations Manager
Shires is the WCA’s Operations Manager and can be reached at wcacenter@wcamanager.com.
Swim News
The Westchase swimmers have been so busy this fall! Ten of our athletes are swimming for various area high schools. They are in the height of their championship season, battling through conference meets to qualify for districts. If they qualify for districts, then they must race their best to qualify for regions. And only if they do well enough at regions, can they move on to the very competitive Florida High School Swimming State Championships!
Once again I wish our high school swimmers good luck.
Not to be outdone, our younger swimmers have also been quite busy. Thirty Westchase swimmers braved some of the worst October weather in years over Oct. 8-9 to race in the city of Tampa’s Nike Swim Meet. Despite being the only Tampa Bay Aquatics branch there, the Westchase kids were able to pull off a second place team finish by themselves. This just shows what a strong group of young swimmers we have! In October we also attended the city of Largo's Annual Halloween Meet.
In November we will venture across the bay for a Clearwater meet as well as for Saturday Morning at the Races in St. Pete.
These events will give our swimmers plenty of chances to make their qualifying times for December’s Gator Classic Swim Meet, our big mid-season swim meet in Gainesville at the University of Florida pool. With all their hard work, I am sure on Thanksgiving Day the swim team kids will be doing some major feasting!
By Kelly Allen, Director of Competitive Swimming
Allen is the WCA Director of Competitive Swimming and can be reached at kah2o@aol.com.
Swim and Tennis Center Unveils Online Registration and New Tennis Program
New opportunities abound at the center, making Westchase’ programs – and registering for them – even easier and more enjoyable.
The Westchase Pool and Tennis has been busy over the past several months with our tennis and swimming programs. This month we have a new 10-and-under tennis program being rolled out. See page 44 for an article about the new program and also consult the information provided on the tennis section of www.westchasewca.com.
If you are a bit older than 10 and interested in playing tennis, our adult tennis pro is ready to get you started or provide private lessons to improve your game.
For our adult swimmers we have hired a new Master's Swim Coach and swim instructor for those who want to swim during our early hours of 5-7 a.m.
If your child or you are interested in learning how to swim, your swim and tennis center also provides lessons year round.
For more advanced youth, our competitive swim program is always looking for new talent.
If your child wants to try out for the swim team, please contact the Swim and Tennis Center, or take a look on our web site, www.westchasewca.com, for more information on all of Westchase’s programs.
Last, this month we roll out an additional feature on the association’s Web site. Residents interested in signing up for programs at the Westchase swim and tennis centers can now register and pay for the programs online. Now you have no excuses! Having your family join the fun while getting fit and active has never been easier!
Check out the Web site today at www.westchasewca.com
By Kelly Shires, WCA Operations Manager
Shires is the WCA’s Operations Manager and can be reached at wcacenter@wcamanager.com.
Swim News
October is a welcome month for the Westchase swimmers. The humidity is gone and the three o'clock thunderstorms are history too. Now we can really focus on practices rather than on what we will have to do during storm delays. In July, August and September we had over 30 practices disrupted by bad weather.
Our swimmers have been busy working hard and attending various local swim meets in Largo, St. Pete and Clearwater. We are looking forward to a warmer winter than what we experienced the last two years.
As October comes to an end, so does the Little Flippers Group. It just starts to get too cold for the little ones as we roll into winter. Don't worry, however, as we will start this program up again next May.
Our high school swimmers are busy getting ready for their run into their conference meets, followed by Districts, followed by Regions and then the Florida High School State Meets. We wish all the Westchase high school swimmers good luck!
By Kelly Allen, Director of Competitive Swimming
Allen is the WCA Director of Competitive Swimming and can be reached at kah2o@aol.com.
Swim and Tennis Center Turns to Fall Programs
With school in full swing, our full schedule of fall programs will help keep the family busy and healthy.
We had a fantastic summer at the Westchase Swim and Tennis Center. The kids had a great time with the summer camps. They enjoyed tennis, swimming, games, sports, arts and crafts plus several field trips throughout each week.
Our swim team program is going strong and if your children are interested in joining the team, please contact the office to set up a swim test with Aquatic Director Kelley Allen.
Tennis programs for adults and children are also available if you have an interest in joining our programs or taking private lessons. Additional information about our programming can be found at www.westchasewca.com.
By Kelly Shires, WCA Operations Manager
Shires is the WCA’s Operations Manager and can be reached at wcacenter@wcamanager.com.
Swim News
The summer is busy for a swim coach, with 10 hours of coaching on deck everyday and long swim meets almost every weekend. There are no days off for months!
Now that school has started, I can catch my breath, catch up on office work and maybe catch some fish or some surf.
As the summer ends and the Westchase swim team grows older, we have more and more swimmers entering high school. This year we have swimmers attending Alonso, Robinson, Jesuit, Berkeley, Plant, Mitchell and Tampa Catholic. I want to wish all these kids good luck in the upcoming high school swim season!
We had a very good summer here at Westchase. Our team membership was up and the kids swam fast! We had 11 swimmers qualify for Junior Olympics (now called FLAGS). We even had one state champion from Westchase: Austin Seller won the 13-14 Boys 200 Breaststroke. We placed Westchase swimmer Paige Carter on the Florida Swimming Zone All Star team and Jocelyn Williams and Kyle Kimura attended the Senior Champs in Fort Pierce. At the last summer meet in late July, we even had several Area 3 Champs.
The Little Flippers group was well attended this summer but will be ending soon as the weather cools down in late October.
I’m looking forward to a great autumn swim season!
By Kelly Allen, Director of Competitive Swimming
Allen is the WCA Director of Competitive Swimming and can be reached at kah2o@aol.com.
Tennis News
Our Web site, www.westchasewca.com, is going to an online payment system for all of the Westchase programs! Simply log on and register for a password. There you will also be able to register for our player-search program for tennis enthusiasts. There will be a short questionnaire to fill out and this will help other players find you and vice-versa.
Westchase’s newly redesigned junior tennis program has four new clinics per week for the 5-7-years-olds and has extended the 8-12-year-old program to 4-5:30 p.m. The breakdown is:
5-7-years-old (red ball): 3:30-4:30 p.m. and 4:30-5:30 p.m.
8-12-years-old (orange ball): 4-5:30 p.m.
Middle and high schoolers (yellow ball): 5:30-7 p.m.
Because of the amount of clinics offered, we do have a minimum and maximum number of participants in each clinic. Please see the Web site for details.
We also have our popular Free Fridays once per session, supervised match play, tournaments, camps, family tennis fiestas and junior league tennis.
We are kicking off the season with a new adult tennis program, The Adult Tennis Buffet. The program features a daytime and evening version of three types of clinics. Tuesdays clinics, called Between the Lines, are all about technique. Monday’s tactical-based clinic, called All Court Tennis, helps with singles and doubles play. Wednesday and Saturday mornings’ clinics, called Run n’ Gun, represent our version of cardio-tennis. This clinic is a lot more fun than running on a treadmill.
Players sign up for a designated number of hours for the four-week session and choose those clinics they would like to attend. Put yourself on a schedule or mix and match your clinics to meet your needs. Come on out and sample Brett’s Tennis Buffet!
By joining the adult or junior programs you will be considered a preferred player and will have access to other discounts during the session as well as a discount on each session thereafter.
By Mike Larscheid, Youth Tennis Director
Larscheid, the WCA’s Tennis Pro, can be reached at mike@wcamanager.com.